NEC doubles output in China

NEC doubles output in China

TOKYO (AFP): Japanese computer giant NEC Corp. will double its microchip output in China to meet brisk demand from mobile telephone companies, a report said Saturday.

NEC, the world's second largest microchip maker after Intel Corp., will invest 37 billion yen (US$339 billion) to raise output at joint ventures in Shanghai and Beijing, Nihon Keizai Shimbun business daily said.

The company will boost production of logic IC (integrated circuits) chips used in mobile telephone handsets, it said.

The number of mobile telephone subscribers in China is expected to reach 70 million by the end of this year, topping that in Japan and creating the world's second largest market after the United States.